The Haunting of the Falcon Creek Lodge published, copyright and written by Roger Hayden.
The story opens with three relatively wealthy men of different careers having a festive dinner at an opulent hotel in a heavily forested section remote from the nearest popular summer vacation town of Cedarville. This was their second meeting of old friends and missed only one member, Bryce Phillips. He had pleaded illness, unfortunately, and was the only one of the four who still resided in the town of which he was the Mayor. As the evening progresses, the three friends continue to indulge in alcoholic beverages, are served dinner and then accosted by a young waiter who kills one of the members with a hunting rifle, driving the others out into the snow storm to escape where they freeze to death. The youth is tried and convicted of murder, although he claims to have memory of the incidents as they occurred. This is followed in 1950 by visitation to the now vacant and reputedly haunted hotel by a TV host famous for his presentations of from such structures. He and his entire crew are completely destroyed by what appears to be unknown sources rumored again to be from some occult source.
The scene shifts to the present when Greg Barrett visits from Syracuse, N.Y., a four hour drive away. Tom Schultz and old buddy and top resident real estate agent of Cedarville, has invited him to see a property that presents a ‘fantastic opportunity’. The former owner of the Lodge has passed away, his son has completely rebuilt and restored the Lodge to its former splendor and has placed it on the market at an exceedingly attractive figure. Greg is a trained hotel/restaurant manager with a responsible position in Syracuse, but anxious to expand beyond. He visits, decides he wants to buy it, bring his wife and her son, with whom he has been able to establish a more or less empathetic relationship, to visit. She concurs reluctantly with his decision, but the son is quite unimpressed. Regardless, they move to the Lodge and the story again unfolds with weird and even dangerous occurrences gradually escalading in appearance. Their occurrences, causes, and results all provide the substance of the rest of the book. Activities that this reviewer agrees with the author’s request that any further description would be a complete disservice to the anticipated readers.
Discussion/Summary: The plot if this book is worthy of interest for the prospective reader of the occult and more especially ghost stories involving ‘haunted houses’. All of the required elements are included including a considerable amount of graphic violence and its result. Regrettably however, the presentation is quite flawed. It is somewhat fragmentally presented, characters indulge in seemingly uncharacteristic manner upon occasion, the pragmatist last owner of the Lodge and his cavalier-like like approach is difficult to endure and missing and/or misspelled words are abundant. In summary, for the reader who enjoys the ‘haunted’ elements that are described to be included in this book. it will be quite enjoyable. Regrettably for those who are disturbed by the editing and proofing oversights, this is not an easy read.
3* Apropos Discussion/Summary.